First week of student teaching done? 5 ways to reflect and crush week two!
- Samantha Fecich
- 13 hours ago
- 3 min read
You made it! You just survived your very first week of student teaching. Whether you are feeling completely exhausted, incredibly excited, slightly overwhelmed, or a chaotic mix of everything right now, you should take a deep breath.
Before you jump straight into week two, it’s time to pause and reflect. As educators, reflection is our superpower. It is key to planning instruction, giving feedback, collecting data, and making critical classroom decisions. In fact, under Danielson’s Framework for Teaching, reflection is a core domain because great teachers constantly use their insights to improve their practice. If you want to use your growth mindset to make week two even better, here are five easy ways to reflect on your first week.
Student Teacher reflection prompt 1: Your firsts
Student teaching brings a wave of "firsts". This past week might have been the first time you:
Led a full lesson
Helped with classroom setup or classroom management
Collaborated directly with your mentor teacher
Start your reflection by looking back at these moments. How many firsts did you experience, and how did you handle them?
Student Teacher reflection prompt 2: Start a Win journal
You had amazing moments with your students this week, and you deserve to celebrate them. To keep up your momentum start a win journal. Jot down three to five wins from week one and make sure to date them. They can be small or big moments like:
Finally remembering a student’s name
Leading a morning meeting
Doing an engaging read aloud
Receiving positive feedback from your cooperating teacher, a student, a neighbor teacher, or an administrator
Student Teacher reflection prompt 3: Identify an area of growth
As teachers, we are lifelong learners and that is one of the best parts of the profession. Embracing a growth mindset means looking honestly at the things that challenged or surprised you, and using them as opportunities to learn. Once you identify an area where you struggled, actively seek out a resource to help. You can look for:
A helpful webinar, blog post, or podcast
A specific book or video
A quick conversation with your cooperating teacher ("I was really struggling with letter sounds this week; what are some resources you suggest I look into?")
Student Teacher reflection prompt 4: Focus on your students
We don’t teach to an empty room; we teach to individual, unique human beings. Take a moment to reflect on your class:
How did you make your students feel valued, appreciated, and seen as individuals this week?
What did you learn or notice about how they learn?
What strengths did your students exhibit?
Focusing on their individual strengths and learning styles now will help you design much more impactful lessons moving forward.
Student Teacher reflection prompt 5: Set a goal
Choose one specific goal to focus on next week. Here are a few great examples to get you started:
Learn every single student's name in your class.
Improve your wait time (counting to five or six before jumping in with an answer).
Include more student discussion or collaboration in your lessons.
Try out a new piece of classroom technology.
Your first week is not about being perfect. It is about taking that first step toward becoming the incredible educator you are meant to be. Keep reflecting, keep growing, and go get 'em in week two!
Connect with Dr. Sam Fecich
Want to keep the conversation going beyond the blog? I’d love to connect with you! Whether you're a future educator, a current teacher, or someone passionate about edtech and innovation in the classroom, there are plenty of ways to stay inspired and supported.
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